(NAME-MCE) Pacific Educational Conference July 14-17 American Samoa

[Anselmo Villanueva]

Pacific Educational Conference (PEC)

PEC 2008 American Samoa

http://www.prel.org/pec/pec-2008.aspx

The Pacific Educational Conference (PEC) is one of the largest
educational conferences in the western Pacific and a major source of
professional development opportunities for educators. The PEC is
organized by Pacific educators for Pacific educators, who also present
the majority of the workshops. Island communities in the
U.S.-affiliated Pacific and their public school systems take turns
hosting the PEC.

PEC 2008 will take place July 14–17, 2008, at Tafuna High School in
American Samoa. It will be cohosted by the American Samoa Department
of Education, American Samoa Community College, and Pacific Resources
for Education and Learning. Participants will be able to register and
propose presentations on the PREL website March 26, 2008 at
http://www.prel.org/

Theme

The PEC 2008 theme is The Pacific Child: A Legacy of Community,
Culture, and Art. School systems throughout the Pacific islands are
working to build their capacity to assist districts and schools in
meeting the needs of all students by: (a) identifying and implementing
proven practices and programs; (b) strengthening teacher quality; and
(c) building and sustaining systemic support for school improvement,
resulting in closing achievement gaps and improving achievement
outcomes.
Professional Development

The PEC provides intensive professional development for education
professionals. Concurrent sessions will include:

- 1.5-hour awareness sessions, which will provide opportunities to
exchange ideas and develop professional growth.
- 3- to 15-hour skill building workshops, which are limited to 30
participants to allow for maximum interaction.
- 3-hour networking meetings, which will provide opportunities to
exchange ideas and develop professional relationships.

Workshop presentations are geared to meet the interests of a wide
variety of special interest groups. Workshops are subject to
cancellation.

Conference Activities

The PEC continues to expand each year with stimulating activities. In
addition to an opening ceremony welcoming visitors to the island and a
closing ceremony to celebrate the success of being lifelong learners,
PEC also offers:

- An Exhibit Hall allowing businesses and nonprofit organizations to
display products, where participants may visit with exhibitors to
preview new materials and share ideas.
- A Student Forum allowing high school students to participate in
group discussions, study visits, and the PEC workshops sponsored each
year by the Close-Up Foundation.

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>From its beginnings in 1984 in a school library in Guam, the annual
Pacific Educational Conference (PEC) has grown into one of the largest
education conferences in the Pacific region.

The PEC is organized for Pacific educators by Pacific educators. It is
hosted in turn by different island communities in conjunction with
local departments or ministries of education.

The focus at the PEC is on professional development, with a wide
variety of activities to choose from. Intensive skill-building
workshops for teachers and principals are supplemented by shorter
awareness and networking sessions. Sessions are organized in strands
aimed at providing intensive professional development in areas of
special interest to educators.

Conference themes and locations are selected by the Pacific Resources
for Education and Learning (PREL) Board of Directors, which consists
of chief state school officers and community representatives from
PREL's constituents.

The Pacific Way

One quality sets the PEC apart from other professional education
conferences: the Pacific way. Professional development sessions are
followed by evening receptions that promote cultural understanding
through song, dance, stories, and gifts.

Delegations to the conference come from the following Pacific island
communities:

- American Samoa
- The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
- The Federated States of Micronesia (Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap)
- Guam
- Hawai'i
- The Republic of the Marshall Islands
- The Republic of Palau

Asia, Australia, and the continental U.S. are represented as well.

PEC Activities

During the 3-day conference, participants select from dozens of
different workshop sessions. Skill-building sessions are intended to
develop abilities that participants can immediately put to use in the
work setting. These sessions are structured in 3- or 6-hour blocks and
may take place over 1, 2, or 3 consecutive days.

Awareness sessions provide information on best classroom practices and
current education legislation and programs, while networking sessions
provide opportunities to exchange ideas and develop professional
relationships. Awareness and networking sessions run 90 minutes.

Other activities include:

- Keynote speakers
- Plenary sessions
- Technology Center
- Exhibit Hall
- Student Forum

The Student Forum is sponsored by the Close-Up Foundation.